


Bloom! Episode 2 - Heat

by pashaimeru



Series: Bloom! [2]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Bad Ending, Corruption, F/F, Magical Girls, Mind Control, Transformation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-06
Updated: 2019-09-06
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:33:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21593119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pashaimeru/pseuds/pashaimeru
Summary: Heat wave keeping the town of White Hollow in its grip, and some deal with it better than others. Our second magical heroine joins, but gets a chilly reception.
Series: Bloom! [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1556194
Kudos: 12





	1. True Path

“Did you... run all the way back home?”

Sofia panted, responding to her nosy big brother’s question only by sticking her tongue out at him. Taking off her shoes, she dashed upstairs into her room and closed the door behind her. There was nothing in the mirror but her own reflection. Almost beginning to think she’d imagined the past half an hour, she took a breath and said the words. “...Bloom Change!”

There was a flash of pink light; a surge of magical energy that made her feel nearly invulnerable. Looking over herself in the mirror, Sofia—Bloom Hope—looked herself over, this time with proper lighting.

She was _cute_. So cute it made her heart soar. It wasn’t just her costume; it was everything else as well. Her skin looked so healthy it was practically glowing, her eyes were deep and beautiful like two magenta gemstones, her lips and cheeks had a pretty pink tone to them. Even her hair, normally unruly and messy, fell down in perfect curls, silky smooth and glossy pink. Much like the golden-haired girl, she looked like some sort of a fairy-tale beauty, radiant and charming. Nothing like the plain old Sofia—not even her brother would recognise her like this.

“Well, aren’t you cute!”

“Eek!” Sofia took a step back and let out a shrill yelp as she saw the princess appear in the mirror, quickly covering her mouth with her hands.

“Are you okay up there?” came Oliver’s voice from downstairs.

“I’m... I’m fine!” Sofia yelled back at her brother, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment as she turned to look back at the reflection. In the mirror, the golden-haired girl was right behind her. As she looked over her shoulder, though, all she could see was her bedroom wall.

The princess smiled, tilting her head. “Oh, I apologise for startling you,” she said in the gentlest way possible, though the twinkle in her sky-blue eyes suggested she wasn’t feeling all too sorry. “Now that we have some time to talk, allow me to introduce myself properly. I am Princess Edeltrude of Melodia. I thank you for accepting my blessing, and I apologise for the trouble I’ve caused.” Her formal, polite words were accompanied by a deep curtsey, so fluid and elegant it left Sofia entirely unsure as to how to respond. Was she meant to curtsey back?

“I’m...” Sofia started, stammering a bit, suddenly blushing furiously. As cute as she looked in this form, she was nothing compared to the perfect elegance of the princess before her. Had she seen her pose in front of the mirror? She shook her head, trying to banish her embarrassment. “I’m Sofia Sylte. I’m... not a princess or anything,” she said, looking down at her feet. That was a dumb thing to say. Of _course_ she wasn’t a princess.

Edeltrude giggled, but her tone was gentle and warm without a trace of mockery. “Well met, Sofia. May I call you that?” she asked, and Sofia responded with a quick nod. “Then, you may call me Trudi. That’s what all of my friends call me.”

“T-Trudi,” Sofia repeated back. The princess gave her an affirming smile.

“Now, I suppose you’ll want an explanation. This must be very scary and confusing for you. I’m sorry you had to go through that,” Edeltrude said, sitting on the bed in the mirror. Again, Sofia turned her head. There was no-one on her bed in the real world.

“Y-yeah. I suppose it was scary,” she said, thinking back to the fight. “Is she really okay? That strange woman, I mean.”

The princess beamed, playfully curling her hair around her fingers. “More worried for her than for yourself? Oh, I knew I chose the right person! The shard within you reacted so strongly to your heart that I just knew you’d be the one who...” she said, trailing off as she saw the look on Sofia’s face. She cleared her throat. “Ahem. Shall I start from the beginning?”

Sofia nodded, carefully walking over to the bed and sitting down next to where the princess’s reflection was sitting on.

“My world—the land of Melodia—is not at all like yours. It’s a land of magic and marvel. You’ve seen it in your dreams, haven’t you? You must have!”

“I think so...” Sofia said, recalling some of the dreams she’d had in the past week. They had been blurry and vague in her mind before, but whether it was due to her own transformation or the princess’s presence, they felt clearer now. Magical forests, filled with faeries and spirits of nature; vast oceans with beautiful mermaids, glittering treasures within their depths. Wonderous objects born of magic and technology, beautiful and arcane. None of it seemed _real_ : it all belonged to the world of dreams.

“That’s right,” Edeltrude said, as if she had read Sofia’s thoughts just now. “It’s a land of stories. A land of fairy tales, of hopes and dreams. It was born out of the imagination of mortals like yourself, a long, long time ago. Our two worlds, while apart, are constantly in influence of each other. Every story, every beautiful song, every happy ending you mortals come up with affects Melodia and strengthens it. And every time things get tough in your world, every time all hope seems lost, Melodia is there to inspire you, encourage you to strive for a better world. It’s been a beautiful relationship. Until... until recently,” she said, her eyes downcast.

“W-what happened?” Sofia asked, shifting uneasily.

“Melodia is not only affected by the positive. Hatred and pain, selfish desires, unhappy endings, the loss of hope—all of those, as well, pierce the veil and change our world. But the darkness was always contained: it was directed into the underworld of Melodia, trapped in the Well of Shadows, kept from influencing the outside world. It was rendered harmless by the magic of our empress. My mother, who has ruled over the world for as long as it has existed.”

Sofia listened on, silently.

“I don’t know what happened. I don’t know why she did what she did. But one day, she travelled deep to the underworld and drew upon the shadows. Imbibing them to get their power for herself, corrupting herself in the process—and unleashing the nightmares trapped in the underworld.” Edeltrude shook her head. “None of us were prepared. We didn’t stand a chance. I gathered everyone I could to oppose her, but she crushed us like we were nothing. Warping and corrupting the land itself, the hearts and souls of those who fought her, turning them into her twisted servants.”

The princess’s blue eyes had a glint of steel to them, her delicate hands tightened into fists.

“I escaped, and in doing so, I stole something from my mother. The Crystal Heart–a condensation of mortal hopes and wishes that has laid at the centre of our world since the beginning of time. I thought I could bring it to your world, use it to gather allies and strike back against my mother. But I had not seen that her darkness had already touched it.”

Sofia could see a vision of the Heart in the mirror. Beautiful and multifaceted, a heart-shaped crystal that contained within itself all the colours of the rainbow. But something about it made her feel uneasy, the same way the Argent Tamer had made her feel.

“It was subtle, a droplet of darkness contained deep within. But it was enough. I used the Heart’s power to breach the veil, but with its harmony disrupted, it had grown weak. The moment I arrived in your world, it shattered into hundreds of pieces, and I lost every one of them. Being a thing of crystallised emotion, the shards sought out human souls in this town—and bonded with them.”

“With...?” Sofia asked, reflexively bringing her hand up to her chest. The princess nodded.

“You can sense it, can’t you? There is one within you as well. A large, powerful shard, one entirely untainted by corruption. Its resonance allowed me to find you and transfer a portion of my power over to you. Sofia, you carry within you the hopes and wishes of countless mortals... and of my people, as well.”

Sofia could feel it. A light shining within her, filling her heart with gentle warmth. She didn’t know what to say.

The princess lowered her head. “...But some were not so lucky. Some hearts attracted the shards that carried my mother’s corruption in them. On their own, they do very little, but...” she bit her lip. “Should my mother or her servants reach those hearts, they can unleash the shards’ poison. They can transform the mortal into one of the Lilin, a twisted servant of darkness.”

“So the woman I fought was one of them? A Lilin?” Sofia asked.

Edeltrude nodded. “That’s right. She drew upon her crystal’s power, the same way you draw upon yours. In doing so, however, she surrendered her soul to its darkness. Whether she knew it or not at the time, she became a puppet of the Dark Empress. One driven by the impulse to see other shards of the Crystal Heart corrupted and to spread the shadow to every soul in sight. That... is probably why she targeted you. Consciously or not, she could sense the shard within you, and the desire to see it corrupted was what drove her to attack you.”

“But... she’s okay now, right? I destroyed the shard. I could sense it within her, and I melted it away.”

“That’s correct,” the princess said, a small smile on her lips. “...Thankfully, the shard hadn’t yet completely merged with her. Her soul was still that of a human’s, not a monster’s. Only a sufficiently long exposure to it, or a truly heinous act—like murder—is enough to make the corruption irreversible and make them a true Lilin.”

Sofia scratched her cheek. “So if I hadn’t met her tonight...?”

“Perhaps she’d have found another victim. Perhaps she’d have corrupted their soul, and her own, so thoroughly there would be no going back. And if that had happened...” Edeltrude shook her head. “There’d be no choice but to...”

“I-I understand.” Sofia looked down, a painful sting in her heart. “Then... I’m glad. That I could save her in time...”

The princess didn’t respond. A moment later, Sofia took a deep breath and looked her in the eye.

“How can I help you? Can I help you save the people of this town? Can I help you save your world?”

The princess smiled back, gently, and a bit sadly.. “...Let’s talk later. I want to give you some time to think, first. To decide whether these powers are a blessing or a curse.”

* * *

With all the excitement last evening, Sofia had completely forgotten she had promised to meet Fleur in the morning. By the time she arrived at the meeting place in front of the aquarium, she was already half an hour late. Fleur didn’t look amused.

“Sorry. I’m sorry!” Sofia said, looking sincerely apologetic enough to soften Fleur’s expression.

She sighed. “It’s fine. It happens. I hope you’re prepared, though!”

“Uuu, I suppose I am...”

It’s not that Sofia disliked shopping for clothes. It could be quite fun, even, a good opportunity to kill some time and pick up something cute. To Fleur, though, it wasn’t something done for fun. It was a serious hobby of hers and could easily be a whole day’s affair. Finding bargains, scouting out the most obscure little shops in the town, trying out dozens upon dozens of articles before settling on the right ones. It was, quite frankly, exhausting for everyone involved. Dot had been smart enough to flat-out tell Fleur no, but Sofia couldn’t bring herself to do the same. Their friendship, she thought, was worth suffering for.

“Good!” Fleur declared, sufficiently pleased with the response. “I’ve already got a list of places I want to check out, so this should be a cinch. Come on, let’s go!”

She took Sofia by her hand, dragging her towards the shopping street. “J-jeez, I’m coming, I’m coming...” Sofia said, her cheeks flushed. “I can walk by myseeelf...”

It wasn’t a cinch. It wasn’t a cinch at all. It soon became apparent that Fleur’s little list was a suggestion, at best: there were plenty of extra stops and unexpected little detours, and before long, Sofia had lost track of how many shops they had already visited. She had no idea White Hollow even had this many clothing stores. It didn’t help that it was still blazing hot outside, the unseasonal heatwave going strong.

“F-Fleeur... If I collapse, please, just leave me...”

The raven-haired girl pursed her lips, putting down the blouse she had been trying on. “You’re being overdramatic. Besides, this store is air-conditioned. It’s quite pleasant inside.”

“But! But, my legs are killing me! And all of this stuff is too expensive for me to buy, anyway!”

That made Fleur look a bit uncomfortable. Though she never brought it up herself, Fleur’s family was the richest in town by far, and though Sofia didn’t know the details, her allowance must’ve been quite generous. The little basement boutique the two of them were in wasn’t at all within Sofia’s price range, but Fleur was unlikely to have any troubles affording what she wanted. “Well, I...” Fleur said, sounding self-conscious. “There’s just two items left on the list, but maybe we could...”

“E-eeh, that’s not what I meant!” Sofia said, hastily. “I’ve already bought everything I could want, so...”

Sofia’s words trailed off. There was a cold breeze in the air, but that wasn’t what caused her to shiver. She felt what she had felt last night, that sensation of dark emptiness, of something being very deeply _wrong_.

Noticing the expression in her friend’s eyes, Fleur blinked. “Sofia? Are you okay?”

“I’ll... be right back! Gotta pee!”

Fleur’s mouth was left hanging open as Sofia ran up the stairs and out of the store, silently wanting to sink into earth and disappear. That was the worst excuse she had ever made. She’d never hear the end of this... but there were more important things to worry about now. Probably.

“Aren’t you tired of all this heat? Don’t you just want to cool down a bit?” said the voice around the corner. “Please, allow me to help...”

Turning the corner, Sofia found herself inexplicably stepping onto a wet sheet of ice, falling down painfully onto her butt. With tears in her eyes, she looked up to see what she was dealing with.

This Lilin was even stranger than the one from last night—this one didn’t even look entirely human. A tall woman in a glimmering white dress, her flesh ice blue in hue, she had a small orb in her hands that seemed to contain a tiny snowstorm within it. She had long gloves and long, fur-trimmed winter heels; her lips and her hair were a dark blue in tone, as were her eyes, down to the sclera. Like Argent Tamer had been, she was beautiful and fascinating, but the darkness emanating from her made it obvious that lowering one’s guard around her would be a fatal mistake.

She had already claimed some victims. There were three blocks of ice, two large and one small. With how thick the ice was, Sofia could only vaguely see the shapes within: two women and a dog. Were they still alive? Could anyone survive being frozen like that?

“There’s still hope, for her and for them!” said the princess’s faint voice, once again coming from somewhere within Sofia. From the corner of her eye, she could see the reflection of her golden hair on the rear-view mirror of a car parked nearby... “All you’ll need to do is to beat her!”

“What’s this? Another victim of this infernal heat?” the blue-skinned woman said, casting her eyes towards Sofia. “Worry not, sweet child. I, the Winter Herald, shall banish this lingering summer for all eternity...”

“...Bloom Change!” The Winter Herald extended her orb towards her, unleashing a wave of sheer cold; Sofia transformed and jumped out of the way just in time, her heeled shoes barely finding enough traction on the ice to do so. She did not land gracefully, slipping on ice again as soon as she hit the ground. “A-augh!”

Thankfully, the magical girl’s sudden change had been enough of a distraction for the Lilin for her not to exploit the opportunity. “Intriguing. Most intriguing! You’ll make for a fine trophy.” With a smile on her blue lips, she turned the orb towards Sofia yet again, the snowstorm within raging with twice the fury.

“You’re going to need to cut that out! It’s hot outside, sure, but nobody has asked you to freeze them alive!” she said, thrusting her palms towards her opponent. “Dream Wave!”

Both of the opponents unleashed their attacks simultaneously. Bloom Hope landed a solid hit: the circular waves of pink energy thumped against the Winter Herald’s body, sending her flying backwards with a scream, skidding over ice. Unfortunately for the magical girl, there wasn’t enough time to properly avoid the Herald’s attack, either. Though she managed to tumble to the side to avoid the worst of it, she could still feel the wave of unnatural chill ripple through her.

It was the coldest thing Sofia had ever experienced, as if she had dipped her whole body into a pool of freezing water. Her muscles grew numb, her body temperature dropping by several degrees. Her teeth were chattering as she picked herself up, rubbing her body to try to return some feeling to her limbs.

“W-what is going on?!”

Sofie winced as she turned her head and saw her friend. She’d come out after Sofie, and now, she was in danger. “Fleur! Go back, I’ll deal with this!” she shouted, but perhaps she shouldn’t have. The Winter Herald’s attention was now squarely on her friend.

“A friend of yours? No, please stay. No need to give me the cold shoulder!”

“Fleur!” There was no time to think. Jumping with all her might, Bloom Hope tackled her friend out of the way of the Lilin’s attack. This time, the coat of ice covering the asphalt played to her advantage: the pair slid across the street together, all the way out of the way of the Herald’s attack, finally thumping against the ice blocks containing the poor women and their dog.

Fleur stared at the magical girl, her eyes wide. “S-Sofia...?”

“I’ll explain later! We have to...”

The Winter Herald snapped her fingers, and the three blocks of ice shattered all at once. Fleur screamed again, and so did Sofia. The victims that had been trapped within emerged, but something told her they were not their usual selves.

Like the Winter Herald, the two women now had lifeless, pale blue skin. If they had been wearing ordinary clothes before, they certainly weren’t anymore: the long, white dresses they wore looked like a simpler version of the Herald’s own, a faint snowflake pattern threaded on them. Their eyes were not as inhuman as their mistress’, but their irises had taken on an ice blue tone, their unblinking stares fixated on the two girls before them.

The dog, too, looked quite off. The small Pomeranian’s fur might’ve been white once, but it was light blue now, frost escaping from its mouth as it appeared to silently growl at Sofia. It didn’t look angry, however. Neither did the two women. Looking into their indifferent, cold blue eyes, it was difficult to imagine they had any emotions at all.

“Get them, my minions! Show them the glory of serving the Winter!” yelled the Lilin, pointing her finger at the two girls. The dog reacted first, pouncing silently at Sofia with its teeth bared.

“A-aah! Dream Wave!” Sofia yelled, hopping up and thrusting her hands out towards the dog. It was thrown backwards, still voicelessly, sliding across the ice down the street.

“Don’t hurt it!” yelled Fleur, hastily climbing on her feet. She’d always been fond of animals, but was this really the time for that?

“Don’t resist. Don’t struggle...” one of the pale-blue women said in a quiet tone, both of them reaching to grab the two girls. Fleur, confused and afraid, took a step back and slipped on the ice...

Once again, Bloom Hope reacted swiftly. Dodging the other woman by ducking under her arms, she tackled the one that was after Fleur. In doing so, however, she left herself exposed. Falling down with her, the pale blue minion of the Herald grabbed at her left wrist, her grip as strong as steel and as cold as ice.

“S-Sofia!” Fleur yelled, once again hastily climbing on her feet. “Watch out!”

The magical girl form made Bloom Hope swifter, but it didn’t significantly increase her strength. Even if it had, with the asphalt being covered in slippery slope, it was nearly impossible for her to get enough traction to wrench herself free. She saw the attack coming, Winter Herald raising her snow orb once again with a triumphant smile on her lips, but she couldn’t avoid the attack in time. All she managed to do was to throw herself to the side, the minion’s grip on her wrist preventing her from doing much more.

Sofia would’ve screamed, if her breath hadn’t frozen in her lungs. The unnatural cold pierced through her, sinking into her muscles, her heart, her mind. There was a piercing pain as if a million tiny icicles had forced themselves into her body, but less than a second later, she just felt numb. Crystals of ice began growing around her legs, her torso, her left arm, leaving more than half of her body encased in a block of ice. At least it didn’t hurt anymore: she just felt tired, now, her vision growing dim.

She had to fight. She couldn’t give up, now. What would become of Fleur? But what could she do? Doing the trick from yesterday would be pointless. Even if it would shatter the block of ice, her opponent was too far away to be harmed by it. She’d waste all of her magical energy in the process, leaving herself entirely at the mercy of the Lilin and her minions. She had to... think...

Someone grabbed her right arm, but where Sofia had expected the cold touch of the Herald’s servants, she instead felt warmth. Soft fingers, holding her hand very tight. “...Bloom Change!”

* * *

Fleur, too, had been dreaming strange dreams as of late. Riding wyverns through wide, empty skies, serving as a witness to duels of magic between rival sorcerers. It had been a bit bothersome for her. She thought she had left such childish, fanciful things behind her, and now they were returning to haunt her at night, disturbing her sleep.

She had seen something else, too. A golden-haired girl with the prettiest smile she’d ever seen. In her dreams, she had found herself quite fond of her, but the memory was always gone by the time she’d woken up and gotten ready for school.

But when Sofia had rushed out of the store, Fleur had seen her again and remembered. Peeking through the curtain of the changing room mirror was a fairy tale princess in a white dress. She tried to say something for her, but she couldn’t make out the words; she pointed upstairs, where Sofia had run off to. Hesitating for just a moment, Fleur nodded, and ran after her.

“S-Sofia! Watch out!” Fleur yelled, but she was too late. That strange monster taking the shape of a woman had her friend trapped in ice, and there was nothing she could do. She understood nothing about what was going on. Who were these people? What had happened to Sofia? She hadn’t even recognised her until she had said her name. Sofia had been trying to protect her, and now she was being frozen alive because of her. Gasping as she saw half her friend’s body disappear beneath the growing crystals of ice, she bit her lips and fought back against her fears and the tears of frustration...

“Grab her hand,” the voice said. Soft but urgent. Golden-blonde hair reflected off the ice beneath her feet. “And say what I tell you to say!”

Almost slipping on ice again while clumsily avoiding the minions’ attempts to grab her, she barely made it to Sofia’s side, grabbing her fingers as tightly as she could. What were the words again...?

“...Bloom Change!”

Something flowed into her body through that touch, passing from Sofia to Fleur. Warmth, love, hope: pure, unbridled positivity, reacting with something buried deep within Fleur’s chest, with something she didn’t even know she had.

There was a burst of blue light as she transformed. Her raven hair took on the bright tone of sunlit sky, her eyes turning vibrant blue, deep as the ocean and as full of life. She found herself wearing a long ballet dress that left her back bare, a glittering spectacle, its colour fading from dark blue to a much lighter tone as it flowed down her body. The transparent, crystal blue heels now wore were like glass slippers from a fairy tale; the oversized satin ribbon in her hair added a cute, but elegant, touch to her appearance.

Under more peaceful circumstances, Fleur would’ve taken the moment to admire herself. She’d gone out shopping for clothes, and she now found herself in a costume more beautiful than any she could’ve even imagined. But right now, she had a friend to save.

“Azure guardian, Bloom Sky! I’m going to protect everyone from the likes of you!”

“Another trophy for me. You’ll be even more beautiful, preserved eternally by the cold!” The Winter Herald pointed her orb at the blue-haired magical girl, laughing as she unleashed her wave of frost.

Bloom Sky reacted with instinct, aided by the whispers of the golden-haired princess in her mind. Crossing her arms in front of her, she focused on her inner calm, remaining resolute even as the wave of cold threatened to wash over her. “Spiral Shield!”

A line of glittering blue appeared mid-air, twisting itself into a spiral between the magical girl and the villainess. The inevitable wave of cold impacted against the shield and dissipated, harmlessly. But Bloom Sky wasn’t done yet.

“Sparkle Blitz!” The blue glitter that had formed a barrier in the air made a line again, now crackling with blue-white energy. The Winter Herald reflexively raised her orb to protect herself, but the attack wasn’t aimed at her. Instead, the bolt of lightning impacted against the crystallised ice that had grown around her friend’s body, shattering it with a shrill boom.

“U-uwaaah...” Sofia looked unhurt, if a bit overwhelmed. Though the cold had made her skin turn almost blue, warmth was already returning to her limbs. “What’s going on... Fleur?!”

Bloom Sky winked. “Let’s finish this up. I’ll take care of her, you deal with the rest!”

“E-eh?” The pink-haired magical girl turned to look at the Herald’s minions, only to lock eyes with the frosty Pomeranian once again. Opening its mouth, it unleashed a freezing ray towards her, a miniature version of its mistress’ attack. This time, though, Bloom Hope didn’t let herself be caught so easily. Jumping out of the way, landing on top of a car she took a deep breath and refocused herself. “Dream Wave!”

“Sparkle Blitz!” Fleur was on the offence. She felt confident; she saw panic in the villainess’ eyes. Lifting up her orb to block the attack, it seemed to be able to deflect the bolt of blue lightning, but the force of impact was enough to toss her off-balance.

“Y-yooou...! How dare you make me sweat like this...!” she yelled, drawing a lungful of frosty air into her lungs, breathing out a hailstorm of icicles.

“E-eek!” Fleur had to jump out of the way of the attack, not having the time to raise her shield. “Sparkle Blitz! Sparkle Blitz!”

The glitter in the air reformed into a bolt of lightning, piercing through the Herald, reforming behind her and repeating the process. Bloom Sky found herself huffing with exhaustion, the heavy use of magic sapping her strength. Had she overdone it? Could she even raise a shield anymore? The blue-skinned villainess lifted up her orb again...

“Dream Wave!” The pink rings of energy Sofia created with her attacks were smaller now, but not because she was running out of strength. Rather, she was focusing them on a single target: the orb wielded by the Winter Herald. It escaped her grasp, flying over the street, finally impacting against a brick wall—and shattering into a thousand pieces. Her three minions collapsed on the spot, like puppets with their strings cut.

“N-nooo!”

“Sparkle Blitz!”

* * *

Bloom Sky knelt over the unconscious body of the Pomeranian. Taking a breath, she drew upon Edeltrude’s power. “Bloom Cure!” Its hind legs twitched a bit. Warmth returned to its body, its blue fur rapidly turning white again. Reaching down to confirm that its heart was beating again, Fleur sighed with relief. “T-thank goodness...”

Bloom Hope, meanwhile, had taken care of the three women—The Winter Herald herself, and her two minions. The dark crystal shard within the Herald’s heart had a strange purple glow to it, but it was soon cleansed, and shattered, by the princess’s golden magic. The Winter Herald was gone, an ordinary woman in her place. “That was... that was so scary! I can’t believe she almost got me!”

Edeltrude pursed her lips, her faint reflection still visible on the ice beneath their feet. “That’s twice now you’ve almost lost. Please be more careful!”

Sofia gave her an apologetic wince in return.

Fleur blinked. “I think we have an audience,” she said, standing up and looking around. It wasn’t a busy street, but they certainly weren’t the only people around. A few people were staring from distance at the strangely dressed girls, the unconscious bodies and the sheet of ice coating the asphalt. How much of the fight had they seen? “Should we... go?”

“L-let’s!” Sofia said, springing up quickly. Thankfully, the two of them were still in their magical girl forms. It seemed unlikely anyone would recognise them, but once again, she felt like she’d rather not stick around to explain things. Besides, didn’t they kind of look like the bad guys here...?

“Very well.” Fleur stepped over to her friend, taking her by the hand and smiling at her. “You two are going to have to fill me in after this...” she said, glancing both at Sofia and the reflection of the princess. “...But for now, let’s run!”

* * *

“Eeeeh... no fun.” The little witch tore her eyes away from the scrying pool, sitting down on the cold stone floor. The few glimpses she had caught of the battle had told her enough. With a little pout, she pulled her down purple witch’s hat to cover her eyes.

There was another girl in the room with her. Older, with a gentle smile on her green lips as she crouched down to pat the witch on her back. “Now, now. It was a good attempt,” she said in her usual, soothing tone.

“Hmph,” the witch said, crossing her arms. “Don’t try to make me feel better. I could’ve got her! Could’ve gotten that crystal within her!”

“You didn’t,” the girl in green said. “But at least we saw our opponents in action. Trudi has such cute new bodyguards, don’t you think?” She laughed softly. “I’m so happy for her.”

“Mmm...” the witch said, taking off her hat and spinning it in in her hands, her lilac hair with its twin ponytails exposed. “She’s hard to find. I thought I saw a glimpse of her, but she keeps hopping through mirrors. It’s such a bother...”

“We’re not going to find her like this. The crystal shards conceal her presence, prevent us from reaching her. Shattered as the Heart might be, it yet protects her.” With a smile, the girl in green took the little witch to her embrace. For once, she only responded with mild struggling and grumbling. “We’ll need to be subtler. Spread our taint in secret. Direct attacks like these are just going to be foiled by Trudi’s new friends.”

“Oooor,” the witch said, finally pushing the other girl away. “We could just get them! Turn ‘em into Lilin and make ‘em serve us! The shards inside of them are huge, most of our work would be done if we just got to them!”

“Of course. Our Empress has given us free hands to deal with the matter as we please. Only she can tell you what to do, I cannot. But do be careful, Lilibeth. I don’t think she’s going to be too tolerant of you making too much of a mess of things.”

“H-hmph. You got your Lilin defeated too, so get off your high horse!”

The other girl’s smile didn’t waver. “Perhaps Edelynn will fare better than either of us. Her Grace certainly seems to have high hopes for her, with all the time she spent _fixing_ her...”

That made the witch fall quiet for a moment. “...Well, it’s only just started. Trudi is fighting a losing battle. She can’t win,” she said, giving the girl in green a wide grin. “We can take all the time we need...”


	2. Another Fate

Tick, tock. The clock on the wall is ticking, but are its hands moving at all?

“No good?” the small girl asks, sighing. “Maybe this one, then?”

She leaves the strand alone, returning to the main path. Tracing it down, reading it with her fingers.

“Another foolish opponent,” she says, smiling. “Two champions now. Two against one. It’s hardly fair, is it? She never does stand a chance. Except...”

Two girls, one in pink and one in blue, finding the resolve to protect one another.

“Look. Up here, right before,” the girl says softly, backtracking a bit. Another thin strand, barely visible, cold as ice. “I like these sorts of things. When it’s not really anyone’s fault. When everything should’ve gone right, but it simply didn’t. A single misstep and a tragic fate...”

A giggle. “It’s anticlimactic. No-one would like to read a story that ends like this. Here, look.”

* * *

“S-Sofia! Watch out!” Fleur yelled, but she was too late. That strange monster taking the shape of a woman had her friend trapped in ice, and there was nothing she could do. She understood nothing about what was going on. Who were these people? What had happened to Sofia? She hadn’t even recognised her until she had said her name. Sofia had been trying to protect her, and now she was being frozen alive because of her. Gasping as she saw half her friend’s body disappear beneath the growing crystals of ice, she bit her lips and fought back against her fears and the tears of frustration...

“Grab her hand,” the voice said. Soft but urgent. Golden-blonde hair reflected off the ice beneath her feet. “And say what I tell you to say!”

Trying to rush to her friend’s side, Fleur ducked under the Winter Herald’s minion’s attempts to grab her—but she was no magical girl with superior reflexes. With a shrill shriek, she lost her balance and fell, only to be grabbed by her wrist and pulled into the minions’ tight embrace.

“Let... let go of me!” she said with a wavering voice, her body already growing numb from the sheer cold of the creatures. “S-Sofia! Someone, help—”

Her words died in her mouth as the pale blue minion of the Herald planted her lips against hers. A cold breath traversed down her throat, freezing her lungs, freezing her heart. She struggled for a few seconds longer, until all of her movements ceased, crystals of ice rapidly coating her frozen cold body. The last thing she saw before the frost covered her eyes was the Winter Herald walking up to Sofia, grabbing her hand and finishing what she had started.

* * *

The town was beautiful, perfect, still. With eternal frost permeating everything, all unnecessary motion had ceased. The sun, high up in the sky, could not melt the towers of ice the Winter Herald—no, the Winter Queen—had raised, monuments to her perfection.

Most of the people had escaped. Out of those that did not, some had been made into the Queen’s new servants, sharing her cold glory, but most hadn’t. She had no need for a large number of serfs. They had simply been frozen, encased in ice and preserved forever, protected from heat and the ravages of time.

“Fleur, my darling?” the Queen said, addressing the servant sitting by her side.

The raven-haired girl turned her head slowly to face her, her unblinking blue eyes meeting her own. “Yes, my Queen?”

“Shall we take a walk?”

The girl stood up obediently, waiting for her Queen to take lead. It had been four days since she had last been commanded to move, but that didn’t bother her. Nothing did, anymore. She could not feel boredom or excitement; her frozen muscles could not ache or grow numb. She merely existed, for the sake of her Queen, for the sake of being beautiful for her. In her white dress, with her blue lips and a cold gaze, she was a mirror to her Queen’s perfection.

The Winter Queen smiled. Out of all her servants, she might’ve been her favourite one. It had taken her days to snuff out that infernal fire within her, but now, finally, she had been perfected. Taking the girl by her hand, she led her through the streets of her domain, finally arriving to the street where her conquest had begun.

Enshrined there was the girl in pink, serving as an eternal reminder to the Queen’s would be-enemies of what would happen to those who would dare to rise against her. Her expression forever frozen in fear and desperation, a thin layer of ice coating her cold, cold body. The flames within her, as well, had long since been extinguished. “Beautiful, is it not?” she asked, looking down at her favourite servant. “Beautiful and everlasting. Let it not be said that the Queen does not honour her enemies.”

“Yes, my Queen.” Fleur watcher her former friend with dispassionate eyes. Even through the blue layer of ice coating her, the bright pink of her hair and dress looked vibrant and alive. The same couldn’t be said about Sofia herself: her eyes were dead, her flesh the same pale blue as Fleur’s own.

The two of them stood there for a while. A few minutes, perhaps, or a half an hour, before they returned back to the throne. Time meant very little now, in this world where nothing would ever change. And had the Queen ordered Fleur to watch her friend for all eternity, she would’ve, without a single complaint or thought.


End file.
